Stethoscopes are used by medical practitioners to listen to the sounds emitted by the internal organs of patients. A stethoscope typically has two cylindrical bells located on opposite sides of its head. One of the bells is smaller than the other and it is used to listen to low frequency sounds. The larger bell is to listen to high frequency sounds. The smaller bell is open-ended while the larger bell is covered by a diaphragm.
It is common for some medical practitioners to use the same stethoscope on every patient without thoroughly cleaning the stethoscope after each use. This practice increases the risk of spreading germs and bacteria from one patient to another.
There are a number of devices shown in patents to prevent spreading of germs with stethoscopes. The devices generally comprise disposable covers which are releasably secured over the diaphragm. Some use adhesive while others use different types of retainers. However, to applicant's knowledge such devices are not commercially available. Furthermore, none of these prior art devices provides a clean surface for the smaller bell, nor are any capable of effectively transmitting both high and low frequency sound emissions.